1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a combined storage and installation device for a dental post. In particular, the present invention relates to a container to receive and hold a dental post wherein the dental post may be subsequently removed from the container and installed in a patient without contamination.
2. Prior Art
Dental posts are widely used for securing a dental device, such as a crown or the like, to a tooth. In certain instances, the human tooth is chipped or worn away so that the crown is difficult to secure to the natural tooth. To securely support a dental device, such as a crown, onto a natural tooth, a pin or post is embedded into an opening made in the tooth so that a portion of the pin or post extends externally from the tooth and serves as reinforcement for receiving a crown.
In mounting a dental post into a natural tooth, a dentist bores a hole of selected diameter generally following the tooth's root canal. The bore hole is drilled from the tooth's external surface into the tooth. The dental post is thereafter inserted into the hole.
Contamination of the dental post can quickly lead to infection. Additionally, some types of dental posts have a composite material on the stem; touching or handling of the dental post decreases the integrity of the dental post. As an example, oil from human fingers on the surface of the post decreases the ability to bond the tooth.
The dental post must be packaged and transported under sterile conditions and then installed in the patient under sterile conditions. Alternatively, the dental post may be sterilized immediately prior to installation in the tooth.
Various types of packaging have been used in the past for dental posts. As an example, Krueger, U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,648, identifies the problem of possible contamination. Krueger recesses a socket in the head of the dental post to secure a cap thereto. This arrangement requires a special dental post with a recessed socket. Additionally, the socket itself is not sterilized with the cap inserted.
There remains a need for a combined storage container to retain and store standard dental posts and to also be used as an installation device when installing in a patient.
It is, therefore, a principal object and purpose of the present invention to provide a combined storage container to hold and store a dental post and allow sterilization of the dental post without handling or contamination of the dental post.
It is a further object and purpose of the present invention to provide a combined storage and sterilization container which will allow sterilization of the entire dental post.
It is a further object and purpose of the present invention to provide a cap which acts as a handle to retain, move and install the dental post.